There have been a couple of key times in my life, especially as a young man, I remember thinking very clearly, “now that’s a guy I can follow.” Once was after hearing Dennis Rainey speak to a group of missionaries about the importance of living with holiness. The other time was when I took an Ethics class from theology professor Wayne Grudem back in 2004. In that class he shared how he prays for all the Supreme Court justices, by name, every day. He prayed specifically that God would move them to overturn Roe v. Wade. He also prayed for the people on the courts the next layer down, the ones likely to be on the Supreme Court in the future. He prays for most of them by name as well, not every day, but very often. Then he said “My burden is to vote for presidents that are most likely to appoint people to the Supreme Court that will overturn Roe v. Wade.” That was 22 years ago, and it was amazing to see his strategy and his vision come to fruition when Roe v. Wade was overturned in 2022!
What most impressed me at the time was his intentionality and the vibrant nature of his prayer life. I hadn’t heard anyone speak that specifically and clearly about the focus of their prayer life. I wanted to be like that. I want to have a prayer life like that!
Sunday we looked at Ten Qualities of the Commendable in Philippians 2:19-30. These are qualities we look for in someone to follow. Then Larry Peercy came up and shared how God has blessed him through a commitment to tithing. Larry is 89 years old, married to Sharlett almost 70 years, and leads our largest Life Group. Larry is definitely someone we can all look to as a person to follow.
Who will you follow? Who will you look to for spiritual direction and encouragement? Everyone follows someone. We need to surround ourselves intentionally with those that are passionate about pursuing Christ. Get around the people you want to be like! The more we grow in community and “Spur one another on to love and good deeds,” the more Valley View influences the South End of Louisville with the Gospel of Jesus Christ!